


Watching Over Her

by dietcokeenthusiast



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Corhajat, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-26
Updated: 2016-02-26
Packaged: 2018-05-23 07:05:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6108853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dietcokeenthusiast/pseuds/dietcokeenthusiast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Corrin is sure of her fighting abilities. So sure that she breaks off from her force to tangle with an enemy commander on her own. Rhajat is terrible at following orders, though. Especially when they keep her from Corrin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Watching Over Her

Corrin peeked out from behind the tree. It wasn’t a big group – just an archer and three spearmen. She could tell by their armor that amongst the spearman was the force’s commander. Nothing she couldn’t handle on her own if she played this smart. She knew that she was a better fighter than the three of them put together. She just needed the archer to get out of position.

The waiting was difficult. As much as there was a part of her that loathed battle, it created a sensation in her that few other things could match. The ache of anticipation would soon give way to a surge of adrenaline. The urge to demonstrate all the techniques and skills that she had spent years honing. Had spent years perfecting. The desire for vengeance she worked so hard to deny.

All these feelings would soon rush to the surface, but not until the damned archer got out of position.

After a few minutes, which felt far longer, Corrin caught him cautiously advancing. He was scanning his surroundings, bow at the ready. As he stepped just past the trunk of the tree she had been using for cover, Corrin knew it was the right moment. He wouldn’t stand a chance. She lunged out from behind the tree, closing the distance between herself and the archer in seconds, rendering his weapon useless. Her thrust caught him in the stomach, the bowman crumpling to his knees, yet somehow he was still alive. Wanting to grant the Nohrian as swift and painless a death as she could manage, she raised her sword high to deliver the killing blow, bringing it down with all her might.

_Clang._

To Corrin’s surprise, her blade had been caught by one of the spearmen and deflected to the side. Corrin cursed herself – in her overconfidence, she had managed to overlook that one of the spearmen had accompanied the archer. What was a plan to pick them off one at a time had become one against two. It would be challenging, but she still had confidence in her abilities. She was Princess Corrin of Hoshido, after all. What kind of warrior was she if she couldn’t deal with a handful of soldiers?

The archer groaned in pain as he scrambled behind the spearman, who thrust his weapon at Corrin. She rolled to the side, but was just a moment too slow; the blade managed to slip between the armor plates in her left arm. She grunted in pain as she got up to her feet. She was grateful it wasn’t her sword arm, but she could see a trickle of blood leaking from her armor.

 _Just a flesh wound_ , she thought as she swung at the spearman, leaving a gash across his chest. Just like the archer, he had been wounded, but not incapacitated. Then there was the sound of twigs snapping. Turning her head from left to right, she saw the spearman’s compatriot, as well as their commander, and they were moving to flank her. She needed to act fast, or she would be surrounded.

She reached into her pouch for the dragonstone. As much as she disliked transforming, there wasn’t any time to hesitate right now. She pulled the stone out and held it in her hand, a green glow emanating from the orb. She felt her skin begin to harden, and her teeth begin to elongate, and then a sharp pain in her hand. She screamed in pain as the commander’s pike pierced her hand and the stone rolled away from her. She looked in horror at the bloody wound. Before she could react, the second spearman kicked the dragonstone away. She was helpless.

 _Damn it!_ Nothing had gone according to plan. Corrin was bleeding and completely surrounded now. The men taunted her, spitting on the ground and calling her “traitor,” or worse. Corrin gritted her teeth, and clenched Yato tightly, doing everything in her power to ignore the agonizing pain in her hand. She wasn’t ready to die just yet.

She swung at the spearman she had wounded before, catching him in the throat and finally felling him for good. _That’s one._ Hearing a snarl to her left, she turned quickly to see the other spearman charging at her. Shifting focus, she parried his blade, guiding it to the forest floor. _Two_. Operating on pure instinct, she immediately went to the ground, a thrust from the commander passing mere inches over the top of her head. _Three_. She had avoided all their attacks, and now-

_Thunk._

It was the archer she had badly wounded before, now back on his feet. Looking down, she saw that he had fired an arrow right into her stomach, piercing all of her armor. She tasted something salty and metallic as she staggered backwards, coming up against the tree she hid behind earlier. Blood stained her armor and the leaves on the ground. With her free hand, she grasped a branch on the tree, fighting to stay standing.

Corrin had no intentions of dying today, but it seemed fate had other plans. A few mistakes had reduced the Princess of Hoshido to a bleeding mess, moments away from meeting her end. She cursed herself for her arrogance. She had been so sure that she’d be able to handle the commander and his guard on her own. Hinoka had offered to fight with her, and Sakura had practically begged her to come with her so she could at least provide healing in case something went wrong, but Corrin had been insistent that they should be fighting against the bulk of the force, and that she would be fine. When her mind finally went to Rhajat, however, her regrets became crushingly heavy

\--

“You can’t ask me to let you go alone!” Rhajat pleaded, grabbing on to Corrin’s hand so tightly her nails almost broke the skin.

“Rhaj, it’ll be fine,” Corrin flashed a reassuring smile. “It’s me we’re talking about. I know how to handle myself. Besides, I need everyone we can get dealing with those fliers. A few foot soldiers is a one woman job.”

“Then let me do it,” Rhajat demanded. “Or we can both take care of the wyvern riders, and then take care of the commander ourselves. Isn’t stabbing people more fun with a friend, anyways?” Rhajat laughed nervously.

Corrin sighed. “I can’t ask you to go alone because you’re not equipped for when they get close, and someone has to take care of them now so they don’t end up flanking us later. I’ve got Yato, I’ve got the dragonstone, so that makes me the best person to go north,” she explained, brushing Rhajat’s hair back from her face. “That’s the battle plan, love.”

“Well, plans can change.” Desperation was starting to creep into Rhajat’s voice, and her nail biting was getting even worse than usual. She yanked on Corrin’s arm again. “I need to watch over you. All the time. Please, just let me go with you.”

“Rhaj,” Corrin spoke, her voice growing firmer. “I know you’re worried about me, but this is the best plan of action. Sometimes I’m going to be in danger for the good of everyone else, and that’s okay. That’s what a good leader does. I will deal with them on my own.”

Rhajat raised her voice. “This _isn’t_ for the good of everyone else! If you get hurt, or worse… there’s too many people counting on you for that to happen! You’re not doing this on your own. I’m not going to let you.”

“Yes, I am, no, you won’t, and that’s an order!” Corrin bellowed. “The others need your help to take care of their mission, and I have mine. I know what I’m doing, and I’m not discussing this any further. You need to follow orders, just like everyone else.” She was aware by now she had drawn more than a few sets of eyes towards them. She despised pulling rank, but she needed things to go according to plan. Whether or not Rhajat meant well, she still needed to follow that plan the same as anyone else if they were going to have success.

Rhajat looked downward, hiding her eyes behind her bangs. Her breathing was labored, and what Corrin could see of her face was flushed. After a few moments of silence, she whispered “…okay.” With that, she turned away and started towards the others who were preparing the advance south. She didn’t give so much as a look backward. Corrin felt absolutely horrible, but knew she had to have made the right decision. Whatever was up there, she would be able to handle.

\--

The metallic taste in Corrin’s mouth grew more and more overpowering, and the Nohrians were starting to close in on her. If this was going to be it, she wished she could have at least apologized to the others for her foolishness. Have one last goodbye with her sisters. One last kiss with her Rhaj. Gods, what she would have given for one more kiss. It seemed fate had decided that wasn’t going to be in the cards, either. All she could do was close her eyes, brace for the commander’s attack and hope it wouldn’t hurt too badly.

_I failed you all._

“NO!” Corrin heard a shriek, followed by a loud clang. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw that a magic barrier had deflected the commander’s pike. Weakly turning her head to the side, she saw Rhajat; beautiful as she had ever looked, arms outstretched and ready for battle.

Still watching over her.

“R-rhaj?” Corrin croaked.

“Get behind me, Corrin,” Rhajat commanded. “Someone’s about to die.”

“But I told you to look after the others. Y-you shouldn’t be he-”

“Yeah. I’m bad at following orders,” she smirked. “Now, which one of you am I going to kill first?”

Gesturing wildly, the very air around Rhajat seemed to glow and shift. Within seconds a shape began to emerge; she had conjured a crimson Ox spirit, sending it towards the wounded archer. Her cackle echoed throughout the woods as the spirit trampled him to death. Glancing back down at Corrin, she motioned for her to get moving behind her. In no position to keep arguing, Corrin dragged herself behind Rhajat.

Noticing a flash in the corner of her eye, she reacted as quickly as she could. “Rhaj! To your right!” Corrin called out, wincing as pain shot through her stomach. The warning had worked, though, as she was able to get up a barrier that blocked the spearman’s attack. There was still the commander for her to deal with though, and as she turned around she was hit hard in the face with a butt-end. Rhajat staggered back, blood trickling down her face.

“Rhajat!” Corrin cried. “Are you alright?”

Rhajat checked her mouth, examining the bleeding for herself. She just grinned. “Never better.” With that, the commander had her full and undivided attention. Sparks started to fill the air as Rhajat conjured her next spell, hands and eyes glowing bright yellow. Letting out another cackle, she summoned a tiger spirit which immediately leapt at the commander. He threw his arms up in some vain hope of protection, but it was too much. The spirit ripped through his flesh in a vicious attack, tearing him to shreds. Corrin was awestruck. She knew Rhajat was a powerful diviner, but here she was making sport of the Nohrians who nearly killed her.

Finally, Rhajat turned her attention to the last spearman. Bearing witness to what happened to the others, he attempted to retreat. Grinning her maniacal grin, Rhajat conjured another tiger spirit to chase him down. He cried out when the spirit finally pounced, mauling his head until the sound finally stopped.

Rhajat stood and admired her handiwork. “I feel like we should put one of their heads on our wall, maybe over the bed,” Rhajat mused. “Or at least in front of our castle. Let them know what happens to _anyone_ who tries to hurt you.”

Corrin chuckled, even as she struggled to keep her eyes open. “Charming… as ever, l-love.” Finally, Corrin fell over onto her side, her armor clattering against the ground.  
  
Rhajat turned to face her, a look of utter terror on her face. “Corrin? CORRIN!” she screaed. “No, you can’t get away from me like this. You can’t. I won’t let you. I won’t…”

Then there was darkness

\--  
“…can’t heal the wound on big sister’s stomach all the way. I’ll bandage it up, but she needs to stay off her feet for at least a week. Can you promise to look after her?” The voice was familiar.

“Like a hawk watches its prey. Every minute.” Even in Corrin’s current state, eyes shut, brain foggy, and without a clue where she was, she knew Rhajat’s voice right away. She felt something soft and wet on her fingertips, and a firm grip around her wrist.

An uneasy giggle. That had to be Sakura. “She’s so lucky to have you!” A pause. “I’m… I’m glad you’re my sister too.”

Then the sound of Rhajat’s laugh. That beautiful, slightly terrifying laugh. Straining, Corrin opened her eyes. At first, the only thing she could see was whiteness, but a few seconds later was able to make out the figures of Sakura, applying a salve to the wound in her stomach, and Rhajat, staring down at Sakura’s work, gripping Corrin’s hand tight to her body, occasionally raising it to her lips to kiss it.

Corrin groaned and shifted as she started to realize where she was and how she got there. It didn’t go unnoticed.

Sakura froze. “B-big sister?”

Corrin winced. “Yeah, it’s me, Sakura.”

Sakura covered her mouth with her hands before a moment. “Big sister! You’re okay!” She cried out, throwing her arms around Corrin’s neck. Barely a second later, she recoiled. “Ah! I’m sorry! I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Corrin smiled weakly. “No worse than I already am. You don’t need to be sorry. I’m still here thanks to you.” She then turned her attention to her wife. “You too, Rhaj.”

Rhajat was quivering, and looked dizzy. The grip on her arm got even tighter. “I… I think I might need to sit down. “

“Is everything okay, love?”

Rhajat nodded, her breathing uneven. “I’m just… just so happy you’re okay! I can barely stay standing…”

“Here, then.” Corrin strained to sit up, and pulled Rhajat close to kiss her. She felt Rhajat smile into the kiss, her shaking slowly abating as she ran her fingers through long, black hair. When they finally broke apart, Corrin took notice of how swollen Rhajat’s lower lip was, and the heavy bruising on the side of her face.

“Rhaj! What happened? Who did this to you?”

Rhajat smirked. “They’re dead now. Like they deserve. Unless you want to bring them back and kill them again.”

Corrin shook her head. ”That’s fine.” Turning back to Sakura, she noticed that she was looking far more intently at her feet than either of them. “Sorry, sis. We’ll save the mushy stuff for later.”

Sakura shook her head. “It’s not that.”

Corrin tilted her head. “What is it, then?”

Sakura hesitated for a moment, pacing beside Corrin’s bed nervously. Finally, taking a deep breath, she stood up as straight as she could, pushed her chest out, and spoke: “You can’t do things like this anymore! Hinoka and I were so scared when we saw you. W-we didn’t know if you were going to be okay. Why did you have to go off and fight on your own? Any one of us would have gone with you, no matter how dangerous!”

Corrin was taken aback. She knew how hard it was for Sakura to start talking to anyone like this, let alone her. Sakura continued. “Then poor Rhajat, all she wanted to do was help protect you, and you yelled at her! She’s my sister too now, and you can’t just treat her like that.” The pangs of guilt Corrin felt at that hurt worse than the pain in her stomach. They grew even more intense when she looked to Rhajat, only to see her looking away. “You need to stay safe, for all of us,” she sniffled. “We _need_ you, big sister.”

Sakura’s eyes were starting to tear up, and Rhajat still kept her gaze averted as she stroked Corrin’s arm. Sakura was right; while a good leader sometimes needed to put herself in danger, she helped no one by taking stupid chances, and would just end up hurting the people closest to her. It was every bit as selfish as sitting back and letting others do the fighting for her all the time.

Corrin sat up in bed, taking them each by the hand. “Sakura… Rhajat… I’m so sorry,” she whispered, pulling them both into a hug. “I won’t ignore you anymore. I promise.” Corrin gave them both the tightest squeeze she could manage in her condition. “A good leader listens to their soldiers. I get that, now.”

Sakura hugged her even tighter. “I’m so happy to hear that, big sister!”

Corrin grinned, finally letting the two of them go. “Hey, Sakura, do you want to let Hinoka know that I’m okay? I want to make sure she’s not worried any more than she already is.”

Smiling and nodding, Sakura hurried out of the room, leaving the couple to themselves. Once she was certain they were alone, Corrin turned to look at her wife. “I really am sorry, Rhaj. I made a bad decision, made you worry about me, and then refused to listen to everyone who told me it was a bad idea,” she sighed. “Sakura was right, I really was awful to you.”

Somehow, ever after the way she had acted, Rhajat’s eyes were filled with nothing but love and relief. Rhajat kissed her hand. “And I really am okay. You’re here, you’re safe now, I’m okay.”

Corrin smiled. “From now on I’m going to listen to you, and make sure we stick together in battle.”

Rhajat giggled. “Good.” A grin spread across her face as she leaned in to whisper into Corrin’s ear. “I won’t allow you to get away from me again.”

“Do you have to be so creepy right now?” Corrin asked with a laugh.

“Yes. Always.”

Corrin’s smile grew wider as she reached a hand up to stroke Rhajat’s face, taking care to be very gentle with the bruise. “I can live with creepy if it’s from you, love. I like having you watch over me.”  
  
Rhajat closed her eyes, and leaned for a kiss. Corrin leaned up as much as her stomach would allow, getting as close to Rhajat as she could. She made sure to kiss her softly, not wanting to agitate her injury. When she finally pulled away, Rhajat bit softly on Corrin’s lower lip, leaving her breathless. “You always watch over everyone. You keep them safe, help them make new friends, make them happy. Especially me,” she giggled. “You deserve someone to look after you.”

 _Perhaps_ , Corrin thought, but she wasn’t sure she deserved for that person to be someone as amazing as her Rhaj. “I’m beat up pretty badly. Looking after me might be a lot of work.”

Rhajat giggled, and caressed Corrin’s cheek, her nails dragging delicately over her skin. “That’s okay. I just have a reason to watch you even more closely now.”

Corrin kept smiling. Maybe bed rest and time off from battle would be just fine.


End file.
